Surah TaHa ayat 96 Tafsir Quran 20:96

﴿قَالَ بَصُرْتُ بِمَا لَمْ يَبْصُرُوا بِهِ فَقَبَضْتُ قَبْضَةً مِّنْ أَثَرِ الرَّسُولِ فَنَبَذْتُهَا وَكَذَٰلِكَ سَوَّلَتْ لِي نَفْسِي﴾
[ طه: 96]

20:96 He said, "I saw what they did not see, so I took a handful [of dust] from the track of the messenger and threw it, and thus did my soul entice me."

He said ‘I perceived what they did not perceive read either as third person plural yabsurū or as second person plural tabsurū ‘what you did not perceive’ in other words I realised what they did not realise so I seized a handful of dust from the track of from the hoof of the steed of the messenger Gabriel and threw it in I cast it onto the figure of the calf that had been fashioned. Thus my soul prompted thus it adorned for me’ and it was cast into me the idea that I seize a handful of the dust from that mentioned hoof and cast it onto what possessed no spirit so that it might thus acquire a spirit. I had seen that your people had asked that you make for them a god and so my soul suggested to me the idea that this calf should be their god.

I have seen, said Samiri, what they failed to see -meaning the Spirit Jabril (Gabriel)- and so I took a handful of dust from the track of the Messenger of Allah and I tossed it toward the calf, for so did my soul prompt me -a made- up excuse for his unforgivable sinful act

How As-Samiri made the Calf Musa said to As-Samiri, "What caused you to do what you did What presented such an idea to you causing you to do this" Muhammad bin Ishaq reported from Ibn `Abbas that he said, "As-Samiri was a man from the people of Bajarma, a people who worshipped cows.
He still had the love of cow worshipping in his soul.
However, he acted as though he had accepted Islam with the Children of Israel.
His name was Musa bin Zafar." Qatadah said, "He was from the village of Samarra." قَالَ بَصُرْتُ بِمَا لَمْ يَبْصُرُواْ بِهِ ( (Samiri ) said: "I saw what they saw not.") This means, "I saw Jibril when he came to destroy Fir`awn." فَقَبَضْتُ قَبْضَةً مِّنْ أَثَرِ الرَّسُولِ ( so I took a handful (Qabdah ) from the print of the messenger) This means from the hoof print of his ( Jibril's ) horse.
This is what is well-known with many of the scholars of Tafsir, rather most of them.
Mujahid said, فَقَبَضْتُ قَبْضَةً مِّنْ أَثَرِ الرَّسُولِ ( so I took a handful (Qabdah ) from the print of the messenger) "From under the hoof of Jibril's horse." He also said, "The word Qabdah means a palmful, and it is also that which is grasped by the tips of the fingers." Mujahid said, "As-Samiri threw what was in his hand onto the jewelry of the Children of Israel and it became molded into the body of a calf, which made a light moaning sound.
The wind that blew into it was the cause of its sound." Thus, he said, فَنَبَذْتُهَا ( and I threw it. ) This means, "I threw it along with those who were throwing ( jewelry )." وَكَذلِكَ سَوَّلَتْ لِى نَفْسِى ( Thus my inner self suggested to me. ) This means that his soul considered it something good and it was pleasing to his self. The Punishment of As-Samiri and the burning of the Calf Thereupon, قَالَ فَاذْهَبْ فَإِنَّ لَكَ فِى الْحَيَوةِ أَن تَقُولَ لاَ مِسَاسَ ( (Musa ) said: "Then go away! And verily, your ( punishment ) in this life will be that you will say: `Touch me not."') This means, "Just as you took and touched what was not your right to take and touch of the messenger's foot print, such is your punishment in this life, that you will say, `Do not touch ( me )."' This means, "You will not touch the people and they will not touch you." وَإِنَّ لَكَ مَوْعِداً ( and verily, you have a promise ) This means on the Day of Resurrection. لَّن تُخْلَفَهُ ( that will not fail. ) you will have no way to escape it.
Qatadah said, أَن تَقُولَ لاَ مِسَاسَ ( that you will say: `Touch me not.' ) "This is referring to a punishment for them and their remnants ( i.e.
those who have their disease ) today still say `Do not touch."' Concerning Allah's statement, وَإِنَّ لَكَ مَوْعِداً لَّن تُخْلَفَهُ ( and verily, you have a promise that will not fail. ) Al-Hasan, Qatadah and Abu Nahik said, "You will not be absent from it." وَانظُرْ إِلَى إِلَـهِكَ ( And look at your god ) that which you worshipped, الَّذِى ظَلْتَ عَلَيْهِ عَاكِفاً ( to which you have been devoted. ) that which you established worship of, which was the calf. إِنَّمَآ إِلَـهُكُمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِى لا إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ وَسِعَ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ عِلْماً ( Your God is only Allah, there is no God but Him.
He has full knowledge of all things. ) Musa was saying to them, "This is not your god.
Your God is only Allah, the One Whom there is no true God except Him.
Worship is not befitting to anyone except Him.
For everything is in need of Him and everything is His servant.
Concerning the statement, وَسِعَ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ عِلْماً ( He has full knowledge of all things. ) The word `Ilm ( knowledge ) is in the accusative case for distinction.
It means that He is the All-Knower of everything. أَحَاطَ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عِلْمَا ( (Allah ) surrounds all things in ( His ) knowledge.
) 65:12 And He says, وَأَحْصَى كُلَّ شَىْءٍ عَدَداً ( And (He ) keeps count of all things.) 72:28 Therefore, لاَ يَعْزُبُ عَنْهُ مِثْقَالُ ذَرَّةٍ ( Not even the weight of a speck of dust escapes His knowledge. ) 34:3 He also says, وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلاَّحَبَّةٍ فِى ظُلُمَـتِ الاٌّرْضِ وَلاَ رَطْبٍ وَلاَ يَابِسٍ إِلاَّ فِى كِتَـبٍ مُّبِينٍ ( Not a leaf falls, but He knows it.
There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record. ) 6:59 And He says, وَمَا مِن دَآبَّةٍ فِي الاٌّرْضِ إِلاَّ عَلَى اللَّهِ رِزْقُهَا وَيَعْلَمُ مُسْتَقَرَّهَا وَمُسْتَوْدَعَهَا كُلٌّ فِى كِتَابٍ مُّبِينٍ ( And no moving creature is there on earth but its provision is due from Allah.
And He knows its dwelling place and its deposit.
All is in a Clear Book. ) 11:6 The Ayat that mention this are numerous.

(20:96) He replied, "I saw what the people did not see: so I took a handful of dust from the footprints of the Messenger, and sprinkled it (on the calf), for so did my soul prompt me. " *73

He said, "I saw what they did meaning

*73) here has been a good deal of divergence of opinion in regard to the interpretation of this verse.
According to the majority of the early commentators and their followers, it means: " The Samiri saw the Messenger ( Angel Gabriel ) when he was passing and took a handful of dust from his footprints.
Then he sprinkled this upon the idol of the golden calf.
This created life in it and it began to low like a living calf. " The Qur'an, in fact, dces not say that this actually happened but merely cites the reply given by the Samiri to Prophet Moses when the latter took him to, task for the great sin he had committed.

There are others who interpret the words of the Samiri; like this: " I saw a Weakness in the Messenger ( Prophet Moses ) or in his Creed, which others did not see.
Therefore I followed in his footsteps to a certain limit but afterwards I left his way. " This interpretation was moat probably put forward first of alI by Abu Muslim Isfahani.
Then Imam Razi not only cited it in his own Commentary but also approved of it.
And now it is being followed by some modernistic commentators, who try to prove their own favourite theories by giving far-fetched interpretations to the obvious meaning of the words of the Qur'an.
Such people forget that the Qur'an has not been sent down in the terminology of enigmas, riddles and puzzles but in clear, plain and intelligible Arabic.
Therefore the Qur'an would have never employed the words it has used in the Text to convey the meaning given by them because their usage cannot support that far-fetched interpretation.
What such interpreters really mean to imply is that Allah has failed to express Himself clearly and plainly; therefore, they wish to come to His rescue by their interpretations in order to save Him from the ridicule of the " learned " people.

If we study the verse in the context in which it occurs, we shall be able to understand easily that the Samiri was a mischief-monger who had contrived his deceitful scheme after a good deal of consideration.
As he appears to have been a good craftsman, he caused the golden calf he had made to produce a lowing sound, and successfully deluded the ignorant and simple people.
He did not rest content with this but impudently invented the story that he had seen what the common people could not see and that he had taken a handful of the dust from the footprints of the Messenger and sprinkled it on the calf which made it low like a living calf.
It is possible that by the " Messenger ", he meant Prophet Moses himself and might have cunningly tried to flatter him, saying, that the dust of his footprints was miraculous.
By saying so, he was playing the most subtle trick.
He wanted to offer an intellectual bait to Moses so that he might feel elated about the miraculous effect of the dust trodden by his feet and utilize his services for propagating his own miraculous acts.
Anyhow, the fact is that the Qur'an has presented the whole thing as a trick of the Samiri and has not given the account as if it were a real event by itself.
The subsequent reaction of Prophet Moses to the statement of the Samiri clearly shows that he considered it as a deceitful story, and so laid the curse on him.

 

How As-Samiri made the Calf Musa said to As-Samiri, "What caused you to do what you did What presented such an idea to you causing you to do this" Muhammad bin Ishaq reported from Ibn `Abbas that he said, "As-Samiri was a man from the people of Bajarma, a people who worshipped cows.
He still had the love of cow worshipping in his soul.
However, he acted as though he had accepted Islam with the Children of Israel.
His name was Musa bin Zafar." Qatadah said, "He was from the village of Samarra." قَالَ بَصُرْتُ بِمَا لَمْ يَبْصُرُواْ بِهِ ( (Samiri ) said: "I saw what they saw not.") This means, "I saw Jibril when he came to destroy Fir`awn." فَقَبَضْتُ قَبْضَةً مِّنْ أَثَرِ الرَّسُولِ ( so I took a handful (Qabdah ) from the print of the messenger) This means from the hoof print of his ( Jibril's ) horse.
This is what is well-known with many of the scholars of Tafsir, rather most of them.
Mujahid said, فَقَبَضْتُ قَبْضَةً مِّنْ أَثَرِ الرَّسُولِ ( so I took a handful (Qabdah ) from the print of the messenger) "From under the hoof of Jibril's horse." He also said, "The word Qabdah means a palmful, and it is also that which is grasped by the tips of the fingers." Mujahid said, "As-Samiri threw what was in his hand onto the jewelry of the Children of Israel and it became molded into the body of a calf, which made a light moaning sound.
The wind that blew into it was the cause of its sound." Thus, he said, فَنَبَذْتُهَا ( and I threw it. ) This means, "I threw it along with those who were throwing ( jewelry )." وَكَذلِكَ سَوَّلَتْ لِى نَفْسِى ( Thus my inner self suggested to me. ) This means that his soul considered it something good and it was pleasing to his self. The Punishment of As-Samiri and the burning of the Calf Thereupon, قَالَ فَاذْهَبْ فَإِنَّ لَكَ فِى الْحَيَوةِ أَن تَقُولَ لاَ مِسَاسَ ( (Musa ) said: "Then go away! And verily, your ( punishment ) in this life will be that you will say: `Touch me not."') This means, "Just as you took and touched what was not your right to take and touch of the messenger's foot print, such is your punishment in this life, that you will say, `Do not touch ( me )."' This means, "You will not touch the people and they will not touch you." وَإِنَّ لَكَ مَوْعِداً ( and verily, you have a promise ) This means on the Day of Resurrection. لَّن تُخْلَفَهُ ( that will not fail. ) you will have no way to escape it.
Qatadah said, أَن تَقُولَ لاَ مِسَاسَ ( that you will say: `Touch me not.' ) "This is referring to a punishment for them and their remnants ( i.e.
those who have their disease ) today still say `Do not touch."' Concerning Allah's statement, وَإِنَّ لَكَ مَوْعِداً لَّن تُخْلَفَهُ ( and verily, you have a promise that will not fail. ) Al-Hasan, Qatadah and Abu Nahik said, "You will not be absent from it." وَانظُرْ إِلَى إِلَـهِكَ ( And look at your god ) that which you worshipped, الَّذِى ظَلْتَ عَلَيْهِ عَاكِفاً ( to which you have been devoted. ) that which you established worship of, which was the calf. إِنَّمَآ إِلَـهُكُمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِى لا إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ وَسِعَ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ عِلْماً ( Your God is only Allah, there is no God but Him.
He has full knowledge of all things. ) Musa was saying to them, "This is not your god.
Your God is only Allah, the One Whom there is no true God except Him.
Worship is not befitting to anyone except Him.
For everything is in need of Him and everything is His servant.
Concerning the statement, وَسِعَ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ عِلْماً ( He has full knowledge of all things. ) The word `Ilm ( knowledge ) is in the accusative case for distinction.
It means that He is the All-Knower of everything. أَحَاطَ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عِلْمَا ( (Allah ) surrounds all things in ( His ) knowledge.
) 65:12 And He says, وَأَحْصَى كُلَّ شَىْءٍ عَدَداً ( And (He ) keeps count of all things.) 72:28 Therefore, لاَ يَعْزُبُ عَنْهُ مِثْقَالُ ذَرَّةٍ ( Not even the weight of a speck of dust escapes His knowledge. ) 34:3 He also says, وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلاَّحَبَّةٍ فِى ظُلُمَـتِ الاٌّرْضِ وَلاَ رَطْبٍ وَلاَ يَابِسٍ إِلاَّ فِى كِتَـبٍ مُّبِينٍ ( Not a leaf falls, but He knows it.
There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record. ) 6:59 And He says, وَمَا مِن دَآبَّةٍ فِي الاٌّرْضِ إِلاَّ عَلَى اللَّهِ رِزْقُهَا وَيَعْلَمُ مُسْتَقَرَّهَا وَمُسْتَوْدَعَهَا كُلٌّ فِى كِتَابٍ مُّبِينٍ ( And no moving creature is there on earth but its provision is due from Allah.
And He knows its dwelling place and its deposit.
All is in a Clear Book. ) 11:6 The Ayat that mention this are numerous.

( He said ) al-Samiri said: ( I perceived what they perceive not ) I saw what the children of Israel did not see. Moses asked him: and what did you see that they did not? He said: I saw Gabriel riding a female horse, Balqa’, the beast of life, ( so I seized a handful from the footsteps of the messenger ) from the dust upon which Gabriel’s horse stepped on, ( and then threw it in ) and threw it in the calf’s mouth and behind. ( Thus my soul commended to me ) thus did my soul entice me to do.

(Samiri) said: "I saw what they saw not, so I took a handful (of dust) from the hoof print of the messenger [Jibrael's (Gabriel) horse] and threw it [into the fire in which were put the ornaments of the Fir'aun's (Pharaoh) people, or into the calf]. Thus my inner-self suggested to me."

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